Thursday, June 17, 2010

Deadspin has a really interesting story about Pete Rose's corked bats. It shows photographic proof that Pete Rose corked his bats, and used them in games while he was pursuing the hit record. Pretty interesting if you’re into photographic forensics.

Of course, whether corking actually helps is disputed at best. If it does help, the effect is tiny. And some claim it actually hurts.

This doesn’t tarnish Pete’s legacy any. He’s already so controversial, and the bat-corking rumors have been around for a long time.

I'm kind of surprised Rose would sell his corked bats. Maybe he was desperate for cash (due to his gambling debts). Maybe he thought they were so valuable no one would ever cut them open, not realizing the tampering could be revealed by modern technology without damaging the bat.

Since the news broke, other collectors have checked their Rose bats, and more corked bats have been found.